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Instruction:Summarize the key points of the article about the space race.

Input: https://www.history.com/topics/cold-war/space-race


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The space race was a competition between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War to develop advanced space technology. Beginning in the 1950s, both countries launched several experimental spacecraft and human-inhabited crafts into Earth's orbit. In 1957, the Soviet Union launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, which kickstarted the race to the Moon. The U.S. responded by launching a series of robotic exploration missions and the Apollo lunar program, which began in 1969 and culminated with the success of the Apollo 11 mission in July 1969. The U.S. became the first nation to successfully land a man on the Moon. After the Apollo program, the race transitioned to the development of space shuttles and the International Space Station.